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The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025. Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra. In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region. The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.

At the very first performance of the German composer Max Bruch’s final version in 1868, the audience embraced the work at once. Bruch’s thoughtful approach to instrumentation allows both soloist and orchestra to shine – their interplay flows with melodic richness and expressive warmth. Like Felix Mendelssohn, Max Bruch was a musical prodigy. He wrote his first symphony and a string quartet at the age of fourteen. Yet it must have been a strange fate for a composer whose works were widely performed and admired to be celebrated, for the rest of his long life, almost exclusively for a single piece: the Violin Concerto in G minor. The world’s great violinists adored it, the public adored it, but Bruch eventually grew weary of players who wanted to perform only that concerto. Unfortunately, he had sold the rights to his publisher early on, meaning he received no income from the immense number of performances during his lifetime. Bruch described the first movement as a prelude – a long one – which leads almost imperceptibly into the second movement. Like Mendelssohn, he lets the soloist enter swiftly rather than opening with the full orchestra. Here, inspired melodies unfold in dialogue with the orchestra, interrupted by two brief solo cadenzas. The violin begins the adagio with a nostalgic, heartfelt line, later followed by brilliant solo writing that avoids any hint of undue sentimentality. A short pause leads into an energetic allegro, where a Hungarian-inspired dance takes command, complete with virtuosic solo passages and a romantic theme that captivates and seduces.

The work on the Sixth Symphony began on 24 September 1879, but was interrupted by a revision of the Fourth Symphony. He was finally able to enjoy some success in February 1881, when the Fourth Symphony was praised even by his most ardent opponents. In May he began a Te Deum, and on 3 September (after nearly two years) the Sixth Symphony was finally completed. Three weeks later he set to work on the Seventh. The first movement of the Sixth Symphony is dominated by the rhythmic driving force that we encounter already in the opening bars - the so-called Bruckner rhythm. The symphony has a consistently bright and warm character and is filled with attractive melodies. The first movement is predominantly rhythmic, and the Adagio (F major) is a grandiose elegiac sonata movement, the only slow movement in sonata form in any Bruckner symphony. The Scherzo is in A minor, but the basic chord of that key is avoided in the first 100 bars. In the finale, the Bruckner rhythm reappears and leads the symphony to an orgiastic end.

The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025. Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra. In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region. The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.

At the very first performance of the German composer Max Bruch’s final version in 1868, the audience embraced the work at once. Bruch’s thoughtful approach to instrumentation allows both soloist and orchestra to shine – their interplay flows with melodic richness and expressive warmth. Like Felix Mendelssohn, Max Bruch was a musical prodigy. He wrote his first symphony and a string quartet at the age of fourteen. Yet it must have been a strange fate for a composer whose works were widely performed and admired to be celebrated, for the rest of his long life, almost exclusively for a single piece: the Violin Concerto in G minor. The world’s great violinists adored it, the public adored it, but Bruch eventually grew weary of players who wanted to perform only that concerto. Unfortunately, he had sold the rights to his publisher early on, meaning he received no income from the immense number of performances during his lifetime. Bruch described the first movement as a prelude – a long one – which leads almost imperceptibly into the second movement. Like Mendelssohn, he lets the soloist enter swiftly rather than opening with the full orchestra. Here, inspired melodies unfold in dialogue with the orchestra, interrupted by two brief solo cadenzas. The violin begins the adagio with a nostalgic, heartfelt line, later followed by brilliant solo writing that avoids any hint of undue sentimentality. A short pause leads into an energetic allegro, where a Hungarian-inspired dance takes command, complete with virtuosic solo passages and a romantic theme that captivates and seduces.

The work on the Sixth Symphony began on 24 September 1879, but was interrupted by a revision of the Fourth Symphony. He was finally able to enjoy some success in February 1881, when the Fourth Symphony was praised even by his most ardent opponents. In May he began a Te Deum, and on 3 September (after nearly two years) the Sixth Symphony was finally completed. Three weeks later he set to work on the Seventh. The first movement of the Sixth Symphony is dominated by the rhythmic driving force that we encounter already in the opening bars - the so-called Bruckner rhythm. The symphony has a consistently bright and warm character and is filled with attractive melodies. The first movement is predominantly rhythmic, and the Adagio (F major) is a grandiose elegiac sonata movement, the only slow movement in sonata form in any Bruckner symphony. The Scherzo is in A minor, but the basic chord of that key is avoided in the first 100 bars. In the finale, the Bruckner rhythm reappears and leads the symphony to an orgiastic end.

The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025. Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra. In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region. The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.

Antonín Dvorák (1841-1904) Symphony No. 8 Op 88 A few years before Antonín Dvorák left for America, the Eighth Symphony grew during long walks in the woods and fields. The Eighth Symphony is the result of a conscious search for peace and harmony. When the storm sometimes roars for the sake of contrast, it only blows away the dry leaves and brings fresh air with it. It is a happily smiling music, a simple, folk fiddler's music that deviates from the strict symphonic traditions. The first movement begins with a sonorous cello theme that then returns twice during the movement; in the introduction to the development and in the recapitulation. The movement closely follows the sonata form despite the great changes in emotion. The slow movement is an adagio in C minor that is built up from a string of beautiful episodes. Then follows a graceful and elastic waltz before the finale once again presents a short introduction consisting of a trumpet solo. This solo also recurs a few times, including as a pianissimo accompaniment to solo flute and played by trumpets and horns. An outward-looking coda concludes the symphony. On 2 February 1890, this G major symphony was premiered with the composer himself conducting the National Theatre Orchestra in Prague, and he also conducted performances in London and Frankfurt shortly afterwards. The symphony would soon triumph around the world, and alongside the Ninth Symphony (From the New World), written in America, it became the most beloved of his symphonies. The symphony was dedicated to the "Bohemian Franz Joseph Academy for the Promotion of Art and Literature", in thanks for Dvorák becoming its honorary member.

The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025. Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra. In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region. The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.